has recognized the government of somalia. secretary of state hillary clinton calls the official recognition a milestone in the fight against islamic extremists. the u.s. has not recognized somalia since 1991 when warlords overthrew the government and a civil war followed. >>> first lady michelle obama was in fine form celebrating her 49th birthday. the white house said the president and mrs. obama dined with friends last night at an italian restaurant at washington's upscale georgetown neighborhood. earlier in the day, the first lady debuted her hairdo featuring new bangs in a twitter pic she featured online. we'll see if the new do is there for inauguration day. >>> in fact, details about the president's big party are well under way. nbc's tracie potts has details. hi. >> reporter: hi, good morning. it takes a lot to get this inauguration done in washington even though we're expecting half as many people. the kraut somewhere between 6 and 800,000. a lot of money and d.c. officials coming into the city, but hotels and restaur